Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
81% of Hiawatha Township’s land is conserved, about 144,240 acres. 95,693 acres are parks and preserves, 72,058 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Lake Superior State Forest - Shingleton Unit (56.2 mi).
Ahead of 94% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hiawatha Township is ahead of 94% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
The longest trail network is Lake Superior State Forest - Shingleton Unit, with 56.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
81% of Hiawatha Township’s land. Who manages Hiawatha Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 173 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shingleton State Foreset Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 95,784 | Open |
| Hiawatha National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 44,095 | Open |
| Seney National Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 7,635 | Restricted |
| Big Rack Hunt Club Private Park | Private owners | 85 | Open |
| Strasler State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 85 | Open |
| Indian Lake Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 59 | Restricted |
| Wyman Nursery State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 53 | Restricted |
| Palms Book State Park State Park | State natural resources | 46 | Open |
| Shingleton Forest Management Unit State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 42 | Restricted |
| Riverbank Sanctuary Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 14 | Open |
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.0 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.4 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°F) | 25 | 28 | 37 | 50 | 64 | 74 | 79 | 77 | 68 | 55 | 41 | 30 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 2.7 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 2.9 | 2.4 |
February is the driest month (1.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Hiawatha Township →
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hiawatha Township | 81% | 0.7 | 72,058 | 63% | A |
| Manistique Township | 77% | 0.2 | 46,573 | 48% | A− |
| Thompson Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Munising Township | 74% | 1.4 | 17,700 | 20% | A |
| Inwood Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Seney Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Manistique | 6% | 0.8 | 58 | 95% | A |
| Burt Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
The longest trail networks: Lake Superior State Forest - Shingleton Unit, 56.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
81% of its land, against a typical 5% for a Michigan town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Lake Superior State Forest - Shingleton Unit and Seney National Wildlife Refuge don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
540,223 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hiawatha Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 139,882 of them inside the town line.
Ahead of 94% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Hiawatha Township neighbors.
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →